Alfred russ



(No Mudel.) 2 sheetssheet 2.

A. RUSS.

HARNESS. No. 445,840, Patented Feb. 3, 18:91.

l I wl Naam lNvm/TDR UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE, I I

ALFRED RUSS, OF EAST BOSTON', MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO JULIUS VESSEL, OF SAME PLACE.

HARNESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 445,840, dated February 3, 1891.

Application filed October 13, 1890. Serial No. 367,931. (No model.)

To all whom, t may concern.:

Be it known that I, ALFRED Russ, of East Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Harnesses, of

which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to breast-plate harnesses, and has for its object to combine in one part a breast-plate and a saddle in such an IO arrangement as that both of said parts shall be permanently connected, so as to be applied and removed together, the saddle occupying the usual position of a saddle upon the animal,while the breast-plate is connected I5 to the central portion of the saddle in such a manner as that the sawing or wearing of the horses mane at the base of the neck, where the usual neck-strap which is used in the breast-plate now in common use is located, 2Q will be avoided.

The invention consists in the improvements in harnesses which I will now proceed to specifically describe, and point out in the claims following this specification.

Of the accompanying drawings, forminga part of this specification, Figure l represents a perspective View of my improved combined saddle and breast-plate in position on ahorse. Fig. 2 represents a side view of the same removed from the horse. Fig. 3 represents a section on line 3 3 of Fig. 4. Fig. 4 represents a top view of the saddle and breastplate. Fig. 5 represents a section on line 5 5, Fig. 4, looking toward the left in that ligure.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.

In the drawings, a represents the breastplate, which is formed to extend around the breast of the animal, and is provided at its ends with buckles a or other suitable means for the attachment of the breast-plate to the traces a2.

l) represents a saddle, which is preferably of theimproved construction hereinafter described, although for the general purposes of my invention the saddle may be of any usual or suitable construction.

c c represent straps which are connected at their upper ends with a ring 14 or other suitable device securely attached to the saddie, and extend downward and forward from said ring to points near and at opposite sides of the center of the breast-plate, the lower and forward ends of said straps being suit-` ably secured to rings or eyes c secured to the breast-plate.

CZ d represent straps which extend downwardly from the ends of the saddle, and are secured to the ends of lthe rear portions of the breast-plate in any suitable way-as, for 6o example, by being connected to the frames of the buckles d', as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 5.

It will be observed that the straps. c c and d d, connecting the breast-plate to the saddle, support the breast-plate in its proper position upon the animals body, and enable the two parts-viz., the saddle and the breast plate-to be treated as one in harnessing and unharnessing the horse. The straps c @that support the front of the breast-plate, by be- 7o ing extended backwardly to the saddle, as shown, are entirely removed from contact with the animals mane at the lower portion of the neck, so that there is no wearing or A sawing of the mane when my improved harness is used, as there is when the ordinary breast-plate is used, having an independent neck-strap passing over the neck of the animalat a point in front o f the saddle.

To prevent the chafing or galling of the 8o animals back immediately in front of the saddle bythe straps c at the point where they connect to the saddle, I provide ya pad e, Figs. 2, 3, and 4, which is attached to the saddle and projects forward therefrom under the 8 5 ring 14', to which the straps c c are secured, and under the upper ends of said straps said pad presenting a soft under surface, which rests on the animals back.

The saddle `is preferably composed of a 9o flexible top piece 0, of sole-leather or other suitably strong and flexible material, and two pads 7 7, attached to a iiexible piece S, the ends of which are attached at 9 i) to the top piece 6, the pad-supporting piece S being free and unattached to the top piece excepting at its ends.

10 represents a transverse strap attached to the under side of the top piece 6 by rivets 12 12, said strap having at one end a loop 13, Ico

which receives the ring il', to which the breast-plate straps c c are attached., and! at its other end a loop or eye lil, which in single harness receives the usual back or breeching st-rap 25, at the rearend of which is the crupper. The central portion of the strap is offset from the under side ot the top piece t3- by the usual belly-straps 2O 2l, which are to form a loop 10', Figs. 3 and 5, through which passes the continuous strap 15, to the ends of which the shaft-tugs 16 are attached. The strap passes through slots 1S 1S inthe top piece 6, and is adapted to slide lengthwise through said slots and through the loop 10', so that the shaft-tags are free to move up and down by the sliding of s aid strap. Hence if there is an abrupt upward movement of one shaft an d a downward movement of the other, caused by inequalities of the track, the strap 15,.by sliding freely through the saddle, will permit one of the tugs 16 to rise and the other to fall correspondingly, so that there will be no side pressure or strain on the saddle and no tendency from .this cause to chafe or gall the horses back.

I am aware that it is not new to attach the tugs to a strap which is free to slide in the feature broadly.

. The water-hook f is not rigidly attached tothesaddle, but is provided with a ring f',

which is engagedl with a loop g, composed of apiece of leather doubled upon itself and secured by arivet 7L to the top piece 6 of the saddle, said piece passing through a slitt' cut `in the top piece. This connection of the water-hook to the saddle enables the waterhook to be turned freely in any direction and affords a secure connection between it and the topV piece G, so that no saddle-tree is required. Y

The terret-rings jj are secured by loops 7.; 7s, composed of leather straps riveted at mm to the top 'piece 6 and curved outwardly.

through slots ZZ, cut in said top piece, the terret-rings being thus flexibly mounted and firmly secured to the top piece.

Itwill be seen that by t-he described construction of the saddle I obtain a light and flexible saddle, in which no saddle-tree or other rigid part is required. I thus avoid the excessive weight ot' saddles usually employed for draft purposes, thus greatly enhancing the c-omfortof the horse and decreasing the liability to injure his back.

It is obvious that the described improvements may be applied to light as well as heavy harness and to both single and double harness. YVhenused in single harness, the backV or breeching strap. will be attached to thel ring or eye 1l on the rear of the saddle,

' and when used in double harness the said tached only to the top piece ot' the saddle and that no screws or downwardly-proj eeting rigid parts are used in securing said rings. Hence the saddle is free from liability to injure the animals back, particularly when the pads become Worn. i

The saddle is secured to the animals body suitably attached to the saddle and extend downwardly to pass under the animals body.

I claiml. The combination of the saddle having the usual straps 2O 21, and a ring attached to the front part of the center of the saddle, the breast plate or strap, the neck-strap c c, extending from the forward portion of the breast-strap d-iagonally backward and up.- ward to thefront edge of the upperv or central portion of the saddle and secured to the forwardly-projecting ring, andv the independent straps d d, connecting the ends of the breast-strap to the sad dle, as set forth.

2. The combination-of the saddle, the breastplate, the straps c c, connected with the forward edge of the saddle at the upper or central portion thereof and extending therefrom diagonally forward and downward to theforward portion of the breast-plate, and a pad secured to the saddle and. projecting from the forward edge thereof under the upper ends of the strapse c to-protect the horsesback from injury by said straps, and the device that connects the same to the saddle, as set forth.

In a l1arness-saddle, the combination of the flexible top piece (i, the pads 'Z 7, located under said top piece, the flexible piece 8*, secured to the upper sides of said pads and attached at its ends to the end portions of the top piece G, and the belly-straps. 20 2.1,. extending downwardly from the saddle, as set forth.

4. In a harness-saddle, the combination of the flexible top piece 6, the strapy 10, extending across the under side ofI said top piece and secured. thereto, said piecel having at the front of the saddle a ring or eyeV for attachment to the breast-plate-supporting straps and at the roar end of the saddle a ring or eye for attachment to a back-strap, and the IOO ITO

belly-straps 2O 21,. extending downwardly from the saddle, as set forth.

5. In a harness-saddle, the combination of the flexible top piece 6, the transverse strap attached thereto and having at its ends the eyes let and 1l and at its central portion'the loop l0', the tug-,supportingstrap.15,.passing through the loop 10l and through slots 18.18

cut in the top piece, pads secured tothe top loop g, attached 1o the central portion of the Intestimonywherooflhave signedmynamo top piece, the Water-hook having a ring onto this specification, iu the presence of two 1o gaged with said loop, the loops or strips 7s 7c, subscribing Witnesses,tl1is 8th day of October, attached to the nop piece at opposite sides A. D. 1890.

of the Water-hook and projecting partially ALFRED RUSS. through slots l Leut in the top piece, and the Vtuesses:

barret-rings j, engaged with said loops 75 k, C. F. BROWN,

as set forth. A. D. HARRISON. 

